Kosher food - a tradition of the Jewish people or a new fashion for a he althy diet?

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Currently, many people who are not Jewish by nationality, but who care about their he alth, have become addicted to a food system in which only kosher food is consumed. The main reason for this for many of them is not at all religious beliefs, but the fact that such products are environmentally friendly and more useful.

Such food is based on the laws of kosher, or kashrut, which meet the rules and norms of Judaism. Of course, people striving for a he althy diet are not particularly interested in these rules, because for them the main thing is the quality of products subject to mandatory certification. After all, the word "kosher" means, translated from Hebrew, "suitable." A special sign is placed on all products as a confirmation of high environmental friendliness and usefulness. Naturally, the cost of products from which kosher food is prepared is much higher.

The main principles of kashrut

1. Meat eaten must be of only certain species of artiodactyl ruminantsanimals. Lamb, beef, goat, venison, elk are allowed. The most famous of the forbidden (unclean) animals is the pig. According to these rules, the rabbit is also a non-kosher animal.
2. "Clean" are all poultry - turkey, chicken, duck, goose. The list of forbidden birds is listed in the Torah in the book "Vayikra", among which are all predatory species.
3. Animals are slaughtered using a special technology, and then the meat used for cooking kosher food undergoes preliminary processing in compliance with certain rules.
4. Permitted fish must be non-predatory, with scales and fins. Shellfish and crustaceans are prohibited. Unlike meat, fish does not undergo special pre-treatment during cooking.
5. Products from "unclean" animals are also prohibited, such as camel milk, as the camel is not a kosher animal. The only exception is honey, although it is the product of bees, which are insects.
6. Do not mix meat and dairy foods during cooking. For this reason, even the utensils must be separately designed for these categories of products. There is no ban on fish and milk dishes.
7. According to Jewish tradition, insects, reptiles and amphibians should not be eaten.
8. All fruits, vegetables, berries, mushrooms are kosher foods.
9. You can eat milk no earlier than three to five hours after meat, as it takes a certain time to digest. At the same time, meat dishes can be eaten immediately after dairy ones, quite simplyrinse your mouth. Kosher food should not consist of both fish and meat.

Features of slaughtering animals, birds and pre-treatment of meat

Not all meat from kosher animals is allowed. Banned:

- meat of those who died of natural causes or were ill before slaughter;

- animals killed on the hunt or by another animal;

- parts of the carcass where there is sciatic nerve and sebaceous fat;

- meat that has blood in it.

The slaughter of animals, the processing of the carcass, the inspection is carried out by specialists, which guarantees the "purity" of the meat.

Summing up, we can say that kosher food is the obligatory observance of certain rules and order of cooking. Jewish culinary traditions are the strictest of all, which is why kosher products are mainly sold in Israeli markets. But, oddly enough, residents of other nationalities and religions also eat dishes prepared from “clean” goods. After all, proper nutrition is the key to the he alth of all people.